10 The Necromancer 9 The Trees 8 The Spirit Of Radio 7 Subdivisions 6 Tom Sawyer 5 The Camera Eye 4 Natural Science 3 La Villa Strangiato 2 2112 1 Xanadu
@@brettengland192 Totally underrated! Almost of their albums have been released as an anniversary box or have gotten the 5.1 treatment...except of course Caress...it gets no love. What an album! It's definitely right up there as far as I'm concerned.
The only comparison The Necromancer should have with the later prog epics like Natural Science is to show how much better their composition skills became after experimenting on Caress of Steel. 3 parts, no melodic through-lines or themes, just stoned guitar fx experimenting, 3 separate melodies, single verse, then Lifeson Solo, tied together only by Peart's sparse Lord of The Ring meets Bytor thread. I mean, who doesn't like a good Lifeson Solo, but in no way is this one of Rush's best tracks, be real, not just contrarian for its own sake. I mean if the band were happy with the track they might have played it after '77. They Played Bytor & the Snowdog plenty, 2112, Natural Science, The Camera Eye, selections from Hemispheres & Cygnus X1 all on later tours & kept Necromancer buried.
It shows what an incredible band Rush were that I would have only chosen two songs from your ten ( Subdivisions and Time Stand Still ), yet I love every one of your choices. A really thoughtful list.
It may be a hackneyed choice but Subdivisions still brings me back to freshman year of high school in 1982. At 56 I still relate to that song on so many levels.
@@classicalbum@splankhoon and followed up immediately by ‘Far Cry’ from 2007’s Snakes & Arrows. That one is so true, and it’s true for EVEYONE regardless of who you are, where you’re from, what you believe or how you openly identify yourself as. Just saying:🤘🖖✌️🎸🥁🎤🎹🥇🇨🇦🎼 It's a far cry from the world we thought we'd inherit It's a far cry from the way we thought we'd share it
Some great choices here, I came to Rush in the late 70s but loved (and still love) Grace Under Pressure as I was at college then and loved how they embraced the 80s.
Right off the top of my head..1.Limelight 2.Spirit of Radio 3.The Pass 4.Closer to the Heart 5.Tom Sawyer 6.Time stand Still 7.Farewell to Kings 8.Red Barchetta 9.The Trees 10.Fly by Night
As ever a thoughtful Top 10 which I have a lot of time for. Not the usual picks. As you love Counterparts so much here's my "counterpart" list: 1. Open Secrets - same themes as Emotion Detector possibly better expressed? 2. Mission - sort of Peart's life philosophy. A spirit with a vison is a dream with a mission. I was blown away by how much better this was live. 3. Secret Touch - ditto. Blistering live. 4. Different Strings - track after Entre Nous - similar themes. Outro much loved by Rush nerds like me. 5. Natural Science - sort of modernised version of Cygnus x-1 but this time 'proper' science as opposed to sci-fi. 6. Between the Wheels - effectively Distant Early Warning turned up to 11 with arguably Alex's best ever solo. 7. Hemispheres - counterpoint to 2112. Kind of ambitious genius. 8. Vital Signs - straight after Witch Hunt and a sort of response to that song i.e. deviate from the norm! 9. Available Light - another song about time with another great solo. 10. Subdivisions - alright, on this one I agree and no counterpart that I can think of. Superlative and sort of timeless.
It was nice to see Emotion Detector mentioned. It's one of my favorite Rush deep tracks alongside hidden gems like Lock And Key, Cut To The Chase, Earthshine, Headlong Flight, and Afterimage.
It's Prime Mover for me. My favourite Rush song, and although I've lived in Toronto all my life, I don't think I've ever heard it on the radio. And trust me, Toronto FM radio in the 80s sometimes felt like wall-to-wall Rush.
Great show; well presented and eloquently explained, as always. My own list is based firmly in Rush’ prog phase, in no particular order: Cygnus X1 Cygnus X1 part 2 2112 A Farewell to Kings Xanadu YYZ La Villa Strangiato The Spirit of Radio Tom Sawyer The Camera Eye Freewill Jacob’s Ladder
9 месяцев назад+6
Interesting list. I respectfully disagree with the bulk of your choices for top ten Rush songs, but drawing such a list is a thankless task. 🙃 Keep up the good work!
Signals was the first studio album I purchased from the band... the very first being the Live offering Exit...stage left. And it had a very modern feel ( unlike previous releases ) I thought at the time. I love it , as with 99% of RUSH's material. You've got some different selections there Barry from the usual suspects of tracks that appear on reviewers or fans lists.. thanks for a great video. 😍
0:00 10. Emotion detector 1:50 9. The Garden 2:40 8. Animate 3:52 7. Entre Nous 5:25 6. Time Stands Still 7:07 5. Cygnus X-1 8:32 4. Distant Early Warning ⛔️ 9:56 3. 2112 11:08 2. Witch 🧙 hunt 12:39 1. Subdivisions Thanks Barry. You’re still the best! I like your list. Strong start with Emotion Detector and the Garden. I think I might come up with my own now! Thanks again.
10)- Rivendell 9)- Jacob's Ladder 8)-Here Again 7)- Bravado 6)-La Villa Strangiato 5)- Between the Wheels 4)- Red Barchetta 3)- YYZ 2)- Earthshine 1) Witch Hunt Very very honorable mentions : After Image Subdivisions Tom Sawyer
Thanks for the video. My three favourite Rush songs are Marathon from Power Windows, Countdown from Signals, and Between the Wheels from Grace Under Pressure.
Rush is my favorite band. I always liked "Signals." I didn't love it because it was such an enormous departure from the previous "Moving Pictures." Over the decades, however, I have a greater appreciation for it. The album has aged considerably well compared to some of the albums that followed it.
A labyrinth of great music to choose from. Neal Peart a true literary lyricist and not a bad drummer to boot. The Garden is for me the band's most emotional recording and one i have to listen to by myself.
Great list!! You and I share #1 spot - Subdivisions has always spoken to me (being a nerd, misfit - never with the 'in' crowd) - plus the instrumentation is perfection! I get chills on the opening synth vibe every time. #2 for me would be 2112. Remaining, in no particular order: Limelight, The Enemy Within, Witch Hunt, Natural Science, Working Man, Mystic Rhythms, Animate, The Garden...the latter a perfect swan song to their whole career, and truly sums up their ethos! RIP Neil.
Neil: ["Subdivisions" is] Hugely autobiographical of course. It was an important step for us, the first song written that was keyboard-based. The upside of that: people don't realize is that it made Alex and I the rhythm section. So the first time he and I tuned in to each other's parts was when Geddy was playing keyboards. It was a great new way for us to relate. It's also a good example of us learning to go into time signature changes more fluidly, and again, wonderful to play live. It's challenging and always rewarding to play decently. From a band point of view, we certainly worked on our musicianship first, then - armed with that increased facility and confidence in our individual instruments - expanded into paying more attention to songwriting, arranging, and production... Our music has always been a mirror of ourselves, our lives, and our interests. Any “shift” in my lyrics was thus a gradual, natural one - my reading expanded, I matured, I didn’t want to do what I had already done. Those were reasons enough to keep trying different things, some successful, some not - but all sincere... If I couldn't look back at songs which were unsuccessful in certain terms then perhaps there wouldn't be any chains of development of progression to other, later numbers... 'Manhattan Project' on 'Power Windows' has the correct balance between the music, the lyrics and the theme... "Middletown Dreams" is a good marriage of lyrics and music. "Mystic Rhythms" is another one.
Such is the sheer diversity and depth of quality of this catalogue that I'd be amazed if two people came up with the same Top Ten. That Time Stand Still and Subdivisions are also in my own Top Ten hopefully means I won't be cast out. Love Rush and forever gratefully uncool.
Thankyou for examining what you feel are the 10 best songs Rush has ever made. And not just Rush's Top 10 greatest hits. Thankyou, also, for not just citing a bunch of tracks from Moving Pictures.
Wonderfully entertaining and superbly insightful! I’m a lifelong Rush fan since ‘83 as a high school freshman, also a rock musician who knows every part of every Rush song by heart, and I LOVE your STERLING work on this, most obviously, a labor (or specific task at least, this 10 Best Rush Songs video!) of love. From an average American w/above average musical taste!
Thank you for your video and recognition for RUSH! I was so pleased that you selected The Garden...what a way for a songwriter to exit the scene. To ponder the metaphorical garden of life in such a beautiful and unexpected way as the last song on his last album always gets me. ❤
I thought The Garden was a fitting song to symbolize Neil's retirement, being the last song on their last studio album. After 2015, I pictured Neil in his garden, enjoying retirement.
Fantastic! This is one of the best Top Tens of theirs I’ve ever seen, thoughtful and balanced. And you are correct, Emotion Detector is the only song on Power Windows that was never played live.
Strong selections. Another huge vote for Witch Hunt, an underrated and amazing song musically and thematically/lyrically more applicable today than ever.
A well argued Top 10 List for my favorite band! You almost had me convinced that Time Stand Still should be in a Top 10 List! ;-) I fully support your feelings/thoughts about Subdivisions. So good. So under appreciated by a lot of fans. Oh well. Love your work!
Unusual but gutsy choice of songs, Barry. I commend you for going outside the typical selections. I'd most likely go a bit more traditional with this list, even though I know that I'll get some criticisms from others about leaving off "2112" and "Spirit of Radio." (I've heard them so often on the radio that they've lost some of their appeal for me.) 10. Red Sector A 9. Closer to the Heart 8. Red Barchetta 7. Subdivisions 6. The Trees 5. Jacob's Ladder 4. La Villa Strangiato 3. The Analog Kid 2. Limelight 1. Xanadu (Exit Stage Left version)
As a snapshot right now I would choose in no particular order Working Man The Pass LVS Natural Science A Farewell to Kings Test For Echo In The End from ATWAS Hemispheres Book II Mission Marathon
So glad you gave a shout out to "Witch Hunt" one of my all time Rush Tracks. I'd have also given a mention to "Red Sector A" which apart from the family connection to Geddy also has personal overtones for me as my own father also survived Auschwitz and I just love Neil's drumming on it.
Love the Supertramp T. I just got the original CD and the remastered one too. I love Breakfast in America but Crime is amazing. Rush rocks. Power trios rule.
Great list! while I may disagree with some, I'm glad to see that it spanned the decades! Rather than giving my list, this is how I see yours (at the moment anyway, as it pretty much changes every day...) 10 - Emotion Detector - Top 30 9 - The Garden - Top 6 8 - Animate - Top 8 7 - Entre Nous - Top 40 6 - Time Stand Still - Top 10 5 - Cygnus Book 1 - Top 12 4 - Distant Early Warning - Top 35 3 - 2112 - Top 20 2 - Witch Hunt - Top 55 1 - Subdivisions - Top 3
So difficult to get 10 best, but here’s a go anyway, but will probably change next week 😂😂 1. Natural Science 2. Witchhunt 3. Working man 4. Passage to Bangkok 5. Losing it 6. Malignant Narcissism 7. The Trees 8. Animate 9. Ghost Rider 10. The Garden
10 - Between the Wheels (Grace Under Pressure) 9 - By-Tor and the Snow Dog (Fly by Night) 8 - 2112 (20:34) (2112) 7 - Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres 6 - Closer to the Heart (A Farewell to Kings) 5 - La Villa Strangiato (Hemispheres) 4 - Entre Nous (Permanent Waves) 3 - Vital Signs (Moving Pictures) 2 - Subdivisions (Signals) 1 - The Camera Eye (Moving Pictures)
Very good choices Barry from right across the bands catalogue. I would find it damn near impossible to limit my choices to just ten songs. Though the early seventies Rush albums are great, I always felt that it was the 'Farewell to Kings' album when the band really hit their stride.
Wow your list houses a lot of my favorites and deep cuts I always liked. Subdivisions was always my favorite Rush song as well. And I love that you had the Garden on here! Another one of my favorites; Great list!👌🏽
I see the constant exploration by Rush over their 40 plus years shows them to be amongst the most pure Prog Rock bands in my mind, so much so I argue they are their own genre as they can't really be pinned down to any single sound.
I just discovered this video today- Rush was my first concert so in a way making the band very important aspect of my childhood in addition to being a Kick A** band all around. I appreciate the wide range of choices spanning the catalogue. I can't choose only ten songs, although I have a favorite album (depending on the day of the week: meaning 7 favorite albums). I like that Barry doesn't choose the typical rocking favorites like The Spirit of Radio, or Tom Sawyer but goes for thoughtful choices spanning the decades, with high consideration of the lyrical content and production. I would say what we agree on is the songwriting. People can talk about Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Tull (lists goes on and on) but what is all agreed upon whether you are a rocker or a progger RUSH has to be on your list! Their music spans almost 5 decades with live shows- and they are never repeating themselves and are always endeavoring as Geddy comments "trying the create the better Rush"
Articulate, thoughtful and comprehensive. So rare to find this level of commentary on RUclips. Worthy of the band, which is high praise indeed! I especially appreciated your departure from some of the more straightforward choices. Subscribed!
No Working Man, No Xanadu, No La Villa...but still a good choice. I would have included the titanic A Farewell To Kings. Still one of the most influential bands bar none. Still deeply missed.
I can't argue with your choices here. Having said that, I do find that my all time favourite Rush song is that which is playing at that moment in time. Every song holds me fast to the spot with it's make up, subject matter, and solid conviction that the band had ay the time of recording.
I never missed a tour from when I became a fan during the HYF period. That said, the Counterparts tour was my favorite of all the tours I saw. The way they presented the new songs from what I consider their last great album was amazing. Double Agent was something live and I can’t believe they never played it again live.
So many wonderful songs, you can't really go wrong Good list though Barry, nice shout out for Animate. My top ten might include; Losing It Middletown Dreams Time Stand Still Mission The Garden Tom Sawyer Freewill Red Sector A Closer to The Heart New World Man
Really interesting and varied list I was most pleasantly surprised to hear some picks. Rush are my favourite band ofb all time and I'd find it impossible to make a top 10 rush songs. However I have often thought that they possibly don't have a song that is better than subdivisions. I just find it so perfect and am always moved by it and am totally in the moment with it whenever I hear it even after all these years. Also Xanadu just has to be one of their best songs and should be on any rush top 10 list
An interesting selection looking beyond some of the more obvious choices that could've made the list. They're probably my favourite band and with such a huge body of work my top ten will likely never be the same from one day to the next. However, today in no particular order I'd go with this: The Trees Freewill Limelight Subdivisions Losing It The Pass Ghost of a Chance Animate La Villa Strangiato The Enemy Within
An interesting top 10....All fabulous songs.....Not my personal choice but I'll stick this playlist on me iTunes.....Top stuff from an absolutely wonderful band....Big part of my listening since my sister got me into listening to them in around '78.... She had the Farewell To Kings and All The World's a Stage LP's.....I was hooked at aged 14-15.....
Fantastic list. I think I would swap out Witch Hunt for The Camera Eye from Moving Pictures. It's (another) masterpiece from Rush and a song that often gets overlooked on an album full of so much amazing music.
Fantastic list and I love that you didn't go with all the obvious ones. I'm especially glad you chose such great numbers as Emotion Detector and Entre Nous. Not only is it a great list, but I appreciate your explanations for why you chose each song, so bravo, sir. As a Rush fan, it's hard to narrow it down to just 10 favorites, but you did an outstanding job.
A thousand Rush fans couldn't agree on their top ten. That said, although I don't agree with all of it, this is a perfectly good Top 10 with some some great pics. Not going to argue with you, what's the point? We like what we like. They are all fantastic tunes.
Thank for a nice review of Rush music. It would be nice to hear your thoughts on another band, Italian prog band Maxophone. This band was once voted best prog band from Italy. It’s actually a real gem. Have a nice day.
I still remember the day I went to my mates house and heard the opening chord from Hemispheres. It’s still one of my go to albums like Foxtrot, Red, Close to the edge and Wish you were here. I saw Rush at the NEC 10 years ago and I have to say I was underwhelmed. I’ve actually gone through their entire catalog on Spotify looking to add tracks to a compilation but outside of Hemispheres, there’s nothing from Rush that really gets me. I know they’re individually brilliant and Pearts lyrics are thought provoking but I just don’t understand why only one album resonates with me. Interestingly, the album was recorded in wales near where I live. Maybe that’s the connection ?
it's really funny how personal taste is .. there are some bands were I pretty much agree with him like 95% of the time, and there are other bands that I like, such as Rush where my opinion can be totally divergent from his in terms of what's good or likeable and what isn't.😂😂
With the exception of 2112 and Subdivisions, this seems like a top 10 list of underrated Rush songs. One of my favorite types of lists to ponder. My personal list for Rush would be: The Analog Kid Animate Turn the Page Kid Gloves Middletown Dreams The Anarchist Cold Fire In the End Vital Signs The Enemy Within
Lifelong Rush Fanatic. My Fav Rush Songs, IMHO, INPO: -Turn The Page -Driven -YYZ -Distant Early Warning -Freewill -Second Nature -Show Don't Tell -Manhattan Project -Closer To The Heart -New World Man -Red Barchetta -The Body Electric -Bravado -War Paint -Nobody's Hero -Scars -Subdivisions -Test For Echo -I Think I'm Going Bald -Half The World -Marathon -Xanadu -Mystic Rhythms -The Trees -Tears -Territories -The Spirit Of Radio
So glad to see some of the really strong songs from the 80s highlighted here. To be honest you could almost have chosen an almost entirely different list and I would probably still agreed with it - as long as Time Stand Still, Cygnus X-1 and the mighty Subdivisions are kept in!
Interesting to compare where these are placed on the UCR ranking of all 167 songs of theirs: 10) “Emotion Detector”- 137 9) “The Garden”- 41 8) “Animate”- 76 7) “Entre Nous”- 21 6) “Time Stand Still”- 25 5) “Cygnus book 1”- 13 4) “Distant Early Warning”- 51 3) “2112”- 72 2) “Witch Hunt”- 63 1) “Subdivisions”- 9
Other than Witch Hunt and Subdivisions my list would be quite different. But that is the beauty of such a rich catalogue with different styles of music. There is certainly plenty to choose from.
By tor is I think is their trippiest and most phycadelic cut ,it has to be in my top 3 ,it's also their best track on all the worlds a stage ,just my opinion .
Neil: From a band point of view, we certainly worked on our musicianship first, then - armed with that increased facility and confidence in our individual instruments - expanded into paying more attention to songwriting, arranging, and production... Our music has always been a mirror of ourselves, our lives, and our interests. Any “shift” in my lyrics was thus a gradual, natural one - my reading expanded, I matured, I didn’t want to do what I had already done. Those were reasons enough to keep trying different things, some successful, some not - but all sincere... When a track doesn't reach people it's really your fault and we've had that experience on almost every album. I think you have to say that if a song doesn't connect with people then the fault of accessibility lies with communication... But if I couldn't look back at songs which were unsuccessful in certain terms then perhaps there wouldn't be any chains of development of progression to other, later numbers... 'Manhattan Project' on 'Power Windows' has the correct balance between the music, the lyrics and the theme.
So Rush is one of my favorites and would like to share my favorites but I have to preface it by saying I was in high school in late 80s/early 90s and the 3 songs that got me hooked was The Pass, Subdivisions and Tom Sawyer. I love the must aligned Presto album and personally feel Counterparts was the last great album. I am not sure if this is in order but...1. Show Don't Tell, 2. The Spirit of Radio, 3. The Pass, 4. Subdivisions, 5. Time Stand Still, 6. Xanadu, 7. Heresy, 8. Limelight, 9. Red Barchetta and 10. La Villa Strangiato.
Some interesting and surprising choices there. Respect though and with such a massive and wonderful back catalogue of work its unlikely many would agree on a top ten.
Huge Rush fan here!! Glad you did something about your favorite songs. Everyone had different faves. You touched on a lot of them for me. Although my faves would look quite different. I can't deny the albums you chose have great tracks on them. And I would have used the majority of them in my list but the difference would be that Cygnus X-1 Book 2: Hemispheres would be there instead of Book 1. Again personal preference. Thanks again for this list. I loved it.
Distant Early Warning is from the name of the system of radar stations in the northern Arctic region of Canada also known as the DEW line. Peart slipping in some Canadiana.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
I could listen to this guy all day. So thoughtful and intelligent.
Rush is my favorite band. My "10 best" list would have 40 or 50 songs on it. No argument for any of the ones on Barry's list. Thanks.
AND TO TOP THAT OFF
I UNDERSTAND YOUNGSTERS ENJOYING POST SIGNAL ALBUMS
BUT MY TOP 50 WOODNT EVEN KNEAD POST SIGNALS
10 The Necromancer
9 The Trees
8 The Spirit Of Radio
7 Subdivisions
6 Tom Sawyer
5 The Camera Eye
4 Natural Science
3 La Villa Strangiato
2 2112
1 Xanadu
The Necromancer AND Fountain of Lamneth. "Caress of Steel" is criminally underrated.
@@brettengland192 Totally underrated! Almost of their albums have been released as an anniversary box or have gotten the 5.1 treatment...except of course Caress...it gets no love. What an album! It's definitely right up there as far as I'm concerned.
The only comparison The Necromancer should have with the later prog epics like Natural Science is to show how much better their composition skills became after experimenting on Caress of Steel. 3 parts, no melodic through-lines or themes, just stoned guitar fx experimenting, 3 separate melodies, single verse, then Lifeson Solo, tied together only by Peart's sparse Lord of The Ring meets Bytor thread. I mean, who doesn't like a good Lifeson Solo, but in no way is this one of Rush's best tracks, be real, not just contrarian for its own sake. I mean if the band were happy with the track they might have played it after '77. They Played Bytor & the Snowdog plenty, 2112, Natural Science, The Camera Eye, selections from Hemispheres & Cygnus X1 all on later tours & kept Necromancer buried.
It shows what an incredible band Rush were that I would have only chosen two songs from your ten ( Subdivisions and Time Stand Still ), yet I love every one of your choices. A really thoughtful list.
It may be a hackneyed choice but Subdivisions still brings me back to freshman year of high school in 1982. At 56 I still relate to that song on so many levels.
Have you heard Jacob Moon's cover? It's really well done. The 'on the roof' video is wonderful.
At 64, so do I.
Subdivisions exactly described my life at the time, I felt as though they we were singing about me.
@@slowmarchingband1yes I have… years ago I saw the video
Witch Hunt should be played on radio incessantly in these times.
Yes it should
@@classicalbum@splankhoon and followed up immediately by ‘Far Cry’ from 2007’s Snakes & Arrows. That one is so true, and it’s true for EVEYONE regardless of who you are, where you’re from, what you believe or how you openly identify yourself as. Just saying:🤘🖖✌️🎸🥁🎤🎹🥇🇨🇦🎼
It's a far cry from the world we thought we'd inherit
It's a far cry from the way we thought we'd share it
@@ZIG4ZAG20 One on Neil's great lyrics.
@@ZIG4ZAG20and alien shore… and red sector A.
And half the world
Some great choices here, I came to Rush in the late 70s but loved (and still love) Grace Under Pressure as I was at college then and loved how they embraced the 80s.
Rush's catalog is so strong that you could have 10 times their 10 best songs somehow...
Right off the top of my head..1.Limelight 2.Spirit of Radio 3.The Pass 4.Closer to the Heart 5.Tom Sawyer 6.Time stand Still 7.Farewell to Kings 8.Red Barchetta 9.The Trees 10.Fly by Night
As ever a thoughtful Top 10 which I have a lot of time for. Not the usual picks. As you love Counterparts so much here's my "counterpart" list:
1. Open Secrets - same themes as Emotion Detector possibly better expressed?
2. Mission - sort of Peart's life philosophy. A spirit with a vison is a dream with a mission. I was blown away by how much better this was live.
3. Secret Touch - ditto. Blistering live.
4. Different Strings - track after Entre Nous - similar themes. Outro much loved by Rush nerds like me.
5. Natural Science - sort of modernised version of Cygnus x-1 but this time 'proper' science as opposed to sci-fi.
6. Between the Wheels - effectively Distant Early Warning turned up to 11 with arguably Alex's best ever solo.
7. Hemispheres - counterpoint to 2112. Kind of ambitious genius.
8. Vital Signs - straight after Witch Hunt and a sort of response to that song i.e. deviate from the norm!
9. Available Light - another song about time with another great solo.
10. Subdivisions - alright, on this one I agree and no counterpart that I can think of. Superlative and sort of timeless.
Finally, a Rush fans that picked Open Secrets as #1! I thought I was the only one to pick this awesome song!
It was nice to see Emotion Detector mentioned. It's one of my favorite Rush deep tracks alongside hidden gems like Lock And Key, Cut To The Chase, Earthshine, Headlong Flight, and Afterimage.
It's Prime Mover for me. My favourite Rush song, and although I've lived in Toronto all my life, I don't think I've ever heard it on the radio. And trust me, Toronto FM radio in the 80s sometimes felt like wall-to-wall Rush.
So glad Emotion Detector gets a mention..always liked that song 👍
Great show; well presented and eloquently explained, as always. My own list is based firmly in Rush’ prog phase, in no particular order:
Cygnus X1
Cygnus X1 part 2
2112
A Farewell to Kings
Xanadu
YYZ
La Villa Strangiato
The Spirit of Radio
Tom Sawyer
The Camera Eye
Freewill
Jacob’s Ladder
Interesting list. I respectfully disagree with the bulk of your choices for top ten Rush songs, but drawing such a list is a thankless task. 🙃 Keep up the good work!
Signals was the first studio album I purchased from the band... the very first being the Live offering Exit...stage left. And it had a very modern feel ( unlike previous releases ) I thought at the time. I love it , as with 99% of RUSH's material.
You've got some different selections there Barry from the usual suspects of tracks that appear on reviewers or fans lists.. thanks for a great video. 😍
0:00 10. Emotion detector
1:50 9. The Garden
2:40 8. Animate
3:52 7. Entre Nous
5:25 6. Time Stands Still
7:07 5. Cygnus X-1
8:32 4. Distant Early Warning ⛔️
9:56 3. 2112
11:08 2. Witch 🧙 hunt
12:39 1. Subdivisions
Thanks Barry. You’re still the best! I like your list. Strong start with Emotion Detector and the Garden. I think I might come up with my own now! Thanks again.
10)- Rivendell
9)- Jacob's Ladder
8)-Here Again
7)- Bravado
6)-La Villa Strangiato
5)- Between the Wheels
4)- Red Barchetta
3)- YYZ
2)- Earthshine
1) Witch Hunt
Very very honorable mentions :
After Image
Subdivisions
Tom Sawyer
Thanks for the video. My three favourite Rush songs are Marathon from Power Windows, Countdown from Signals, and Between the Wheels from Grace Under Pressure.
That’s an interesting trio. Great choices. My 3 off the top of my head; turn the page, alien shore and war paint.
I tried putting a top 10 list and I kept changing it then changing it back and back again. 😊.
Rush is my favorite band. I always liked "Signals." I didn't love it because it was such an enormous departure from the previous "Moving Pictures." Over the decades, however, I have a greater appreciation for it. The album has aged considerably well compared to some of the albums that followed it.
Great choices.
A labyrinth of great music to choose from. Neal Peart a true literary lyricist and not a bad drummer to boot. The Garden is for me the band's most emotional recording and one i have to listen to by myself.
Emotion Detector is a great song that never gets mentioned.
Great list!! You and I share #1 spot - Subdivisions has always spoken to me (being a nerd, misfit - never with the 'in' crowd) - plus the instrumentation is perfection! I get chills on the opening synth vibe every time. #2 for me would be 2112.
Remaining, in no particular order: Limelight, The Enemy Within, Witch Hunt, Natural Science, Working Man, Mystic Rhythms, Animate, The Garden...the latter a perfect swan song to their whole career, and truly sums up their ethos! RIP Neil.
Neil: ["Subdivisions" is] Hugely autobiographical of course. It was an important step for us, the first song written that was keyboard-based. The upside of that: people don't realize is that it made Alex and I the rhythm section. So the first time he and I tuned in to each other's parts was when Geddy was playing keyboards. It was a great new way for us to relate. It's also a good example of us learning to go into time signature changes more fluidly, and again, wonderful to play live. It's challenging and always rewarding to play decently.
From a band point of view, we certainly worked on our musicianship first, then - armed with that increased facility and confidence in our individual instruments - expanded into paying more attention to songwriting, arranging, and production... Our music has always been a mirror of ourselves, our lives, and our interests. Any “shift” in my lyrics was thus a gradual, natural one - my reading expanded, I matured, I didn’t want to do what I had already done. Those were reasons enough to keep trying different things, some successful, some not - but all sincere... If I couldn't look back at songs which were unsuccessful in certain terms then perhaps there wouldn't be any chains of development of progression to other, later numbers... 'Manhattan Project' on 'Power Windows' has the correct balance between the music, the lyrics and the theme... "Middletown Dreams" is a good marriage of lyrics and music. "Mystic Rhythms" is another one.
Loved Subdivisions when it came out as a single, great song
Such is the sheer diversity and depth of quality of this catalogue that I'd be amazed if two people came up with the same Top Ten. That Time Stand Still and Subdivisions are also in my own Top Ten hopefully means I won't be cast out. Love Rush and forever gratefully uncool.
Thankyou for examining what you feel are the 10 best songs Rush has ever made. And not just Rush's Top 10 greatest hits. Thankyou, also, for not just citing a bunch of tracks from Moving Pictures.
Wonderfully entertaining and superbly insightful! I’m a lifelong Rush fan since ‘83 as a high school freshman, also a rock musician who knows every part of every Rush song by heart, and I LOVE your STERLING work on this, most obviously, a labor (or specific task at least, this 10 Best Rush Songs video!) of love.
From an average American w/above average musical taste!
Oh yeah, subscribed finally…carry on the Sterling work!
Thank you for your video and recognition for RUSH! I was so pleased that you selected The Garden...what a way for a songwriter to exit the scene. To ponder the metaphorical garden of life in such a beautiful and unexpected way as the last song on his last album always gets me. ❤
I thought The Garden was a fitting song to symbolize Neil's retirement, being the last song on their last studio album. After 2015, I pictured Neil in his garden, enjoying retirement.
Fantastic! This is one of the best Top Tens of theirs I’ve ever seen, thoughtful and balanced. And you are correct, Emotion Detector is the only song on Power Windows that was never played live.
I always had a soft spot for Different Strings.
Great band, great list. I must dig out my Rush vinyls this weekend. Thanks Barry
Strong selections. Another huge vote for Witch Hunt, an underrated and amazing song musically and thematically/lyrically more applicable today than ever.
Fascinating, I didn't expect any of these songs to be on your list. My list is more in line with comments below with Jacob's Ladder being my number 1.
A well argued Top 10 List for my favorite band! You almost had me convinced that Time Stand Still should be in a Top 10 List! ;-) I fully support your feelings/thoughts about Subdivisions. So good. So under appreciated by a lot of fans. Oh well. Love your work!
Unusual but gutsy choice of songs, Barry. I commend you for going outside the typical selections. I'd most likely go a bit more traditional with this list, even though I know that I'll get some criticisms from others about leaving off "2112" and "Spirit of Radio." (I've heard them so often on the radio that they've lost some of their appeal for me.)
10. Red Sector A
9. Closer to the Heart
8. Red Barchetta
7. Subdivisions
6. The Trees
5. Jacob's Ladder
4. La Villa Strangiato
3. The Analog Kid
2. Limelight
1. Xanadu (Exit Stage Left version)
As a snapshot right now I would choose in no particular order
Working Man
The Pass
LVS
Natural Science
A Farewell to Kings
Test For Echo
In The End from ATWAS
Hemispheres Book II
Mission
Marathon
So glad you gave a shout out to "Witch Hunt" one of my all time Rush Tracks. I'd have also given a mention to "Red Sector A" which apart from the family connection to Geddy also has personal overtones for me as my own father also survived Auschwitz and I just love Neil's drumming on it.
Love the Supertramp T. I just got the original CD and the remastered one too. I love Breakfast in America but Crime is amazing. Rush rocks. Power trios rule.
This is a wonderful list Barry. All these great songs that I would never have thought of
Great list! while I may disagree with some, I'm glad to see that it spanned the decades! Rather than giving my list, this is how I see yours (at the moment anyway, as it pretty much changes every day...)
10 - Emotion Detector - Top 30
9 - The Garden - Top 6
8 - Animate - Top 8
7 - Entre Nous - Top 40
6 - Time Stand Still - Top 10
5 - Cygnus Book 1 - Top 12
4 - Distant Early Warning - Top 35
3 - 2112 - Top 20
2 - Witch Hunt - Top 55
1 - Subdivisions - Top 3
So difficult to get 10 best, but here’s a go anyway, but will probably change next week 😂😂
1. Natural Science
2. Witchhunt
3. Working man
4. Passage to Bangkok
5. Losing it
6. Malignant Narcissism
7. The Trees
8. Animate
9. Ghost Rider
10. The Garden
10 - Between the Wheels (Grace Under Pressure)
9 - By-Tor and the Snow Dog (Fly by Night)
8 - 2112 (20:34) (2112)
7 - Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres
6 - Closer to the Heart (A Farewell to Kings)
5 - La Villa Strangiato (Hemispheres)
4 - Entre Nous (Permanent Waves)
3 - Vital Signs (Moving Pictures)
2 - Subdivisions (Signals)
1 - The Camera Eye (Moving Pictures)
Good list.
Agree with your number 1 - not only is it a perfect fit of words with music, but also Neil Peart’s finest moment as both a drummer and a lyricist.
My top 5:
1) 2112
2) Xanadu
3) Tom Sawyer
4) La Villa Strangiato
5) Working Man
Very good choices Barry from right across the bands catalogue. I would find it damn near impossible to limit my choices to just ten songs. Though the early seventies Rush albums are great, I always felt that it was the 'Farewell to Kings' album when the band really hit their stride.
Wow your list houses a lot of my favorites and deep cuts I always liked. Subdivisions was always my favorite Rush song as well. And I love that you had the Garden on here! Another one of my favorites; Great list!👌🏽
Glad you enjoyed!
I've always loved Middletown dreams & subdivisions.. Torn between them for a fave.
Also mystic rhythms .. never get bored of it
Your thoughts on Rush are pretty much poetry in motion. At last somebody with a very good dose of academia !
Wow, thanks!
I see the constant exploration by Rush over their 40 plus years shows them to be amongst the most pure Prog Rock bands in my mind, so much so I argue they are their own genre as they can't really be pinned down to any single sound.
I just discovered this video today- Rush was my first concert so in a way making the band very important aspect of my childhood in addition to being a Kick A** band all around. I appreciate the wide range of choices spanning the catalogue. I can't choose only ten songs, although I have a favorite album (depending on the day of the week: meaning 7 favorite albums). I like that Barry doesn't choose the typical rocking favorites like The Spirit of Radio, or Tom Sawyer but goes for thoughtful choices spanning the decades, with high consideration of the lyrical content and production. I would say what we agree on is the songwriting. People can talk about Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Tull (lists goes on and on) but what is all agreed upon whether you are a rocker or a progger RUSH has to be on your list! Their music spans almost 5 decades with live shows- and they are never repeating themselves and are always endeavoring as Geddy comments "trying the create the better Rush"
Agree with you on "Witch Hunt"........extremely atmospheric.....
Articulate, thoughtful and comprehensive. So rare to find this level of commentary on RUclips. Worthy of the band, which is high praise indeed! I especially appreciated your departure from some of the more straightforward choices. Subscribed!
No Working Man, No Xanadu, No La Villa...but still a good choice. I would have included the titanic A Farewell To Kings. Still one of the most influential bands bar none. Still deeply missed.
I can't argue with your choices here. Having said that, I do find that my all time favourite Rush song is that which is playing at that moment in time. Every song holds me fast to the spot with it's make up, subject matter, and solid conviction that the band had ay the time of recording.
I always liked Subdivisions. I'd pick some different ones on my list for sure, but I'd probably have that one.
Different to my list, but honestly there’s no right or wrong with Rush, so many classics 🤗 Great vid 👍🏻
Counterparts is such an underrated Rush album.
Their tour supporting that album opened the set with "Stick it Out." It was absolutely incredible.
I never missed a tour from when I became a fan during the HYF period. That said, the Counterparts tour was my favorite of all the tours I saw. The way they presented the new songs from what I consider their last great album was amazing. Double Agent was something live and I can’t believe they never played it again live.
So many wonderful songs, you can't really go wrong Good list though Barry, nice shout out for Animate.
My top ten might include;
Losing It
Middletown Dreams
Time Stand Still
Mission
The Garden
Tom Sawyer
Freewill
Red Sector A
Closer to The Heart
New World Man
Thought provoking list. Well done. Thank you sir.
Really interesting and varied list I was most pleasantly surprised to hear some picks. Rush are my favourite band ofb all time and I'd find it impossible to make a top 10 rush songs. However I have often thought that they possibly don't have a song that is better than subdivisions. I just find it so perfect and am always moved by it and am totally in the moment with it whenever I hear it even after all these years. Also Xanadu just has to be one of their best songs and should be on any rush top 10 list
Great choices - especially pleased to see Emotion Detector, Entre Nous and Time Stand Still in there
Excellent review of the songs which invites listeners to listen afresh and notice new things in the music.
I hear you man! "Grace Under Pressure" is so shiny in spots, but somehow never heats up. Some kind of ingenious for sure!!
An interesting selection looking beyond some of the more obvious choices that could've made the list. They're probably my favourite band and with such a huge body of work my top ten will likely never be the same from one day to the next.
However, today in no particular order I'd go with this:
The Trees
Freewill
Limelight
Subdivisions
Losing It
The Pass
Ghost of a Chance
Animate
La Villa Strangiato
The Enemy Within
An interesting top 10....All fabulous songs.....Not my personal choice but I'll stick this playlist on me iTunes.....Top stuff from an absolutely wonderful band....Big part of my listening since my sister got me into listening to them in around '78....
She had the Farewell To Kings and All The World's a Stage LP's.....I was hooked at aged 14-15.....
An interesting top 10 one which I enjoyed, there are no wrong answers of course.
Fantastic list. I think I would swap out Witch Hunt for The Camera Eye from Moving Pictures. It's (another) masterpiece from Rush and a song that often gets overlooked on an album full of so much amazing music.
Excellent - thank you for doing this video!
Fantastic list and I love that you didn't go with all the obvious ones. I'm especially glad you chose such great numbers as Emotion Detector and Entre Nous. Not only is it a great list, but I appreciate your explanations for why you chose each song, so bravo, sir. As a Rush fan, it's hard to narrow it down to just 10 favorites, but you did an outstanding job.
A thousand Rush fans couldn't agree on their top ten.
That said, although I don't agree with all of it, this is a perfectly good Top 10 with some some great pics. Not going to argue with you, what's the point? We like what we like. They are all fantastic tunes.
As a lifelong Rush fan, I cannot disagree with your list. Everybody gets to make their own Top Ten Rush songs. It's Rule #2112. ;)
Rush are the greatest band ever. In fact even greater than that.
Thank for a nice review of Rush music. It would be nice to hear your thoughts on another band, Italian prog band Maxophone. This band was once voted best prog band from Italy. It’s actually a real gem. Have a nice day.
I don't know, but the solo in Lime Light is a peak I cannot ignore. I listen to classical 90% of my time now but this brings me back again and again.
I still remember the day I went to my mates house and heard the opening chord from Hemispheres. It’s still one of my go to albums like Foxtrot, Red, Close to the edge and Wish you were here. I saw Rush at the NEC 10 years ago and I have to say I was underwhelmed. I’ve actually gone through their entire catalog on Spotify looking to add tracks to a compilation but outside of Hemispheres, there’s nothing from Rush that really gets me. I know they’re individually brilliant and Pearts lyrics are thought provoking but I just don’t understand why only one album resonates with me. Interestingly, the album was recorded in wales near where I live. Maybe that’s the connection ?
Hugs from Brazil 🎉
Great choice for number 1, personally I'd have chosen at least one song somewhere from fly by night, my favourite Rush album.
Can’t make up my mind on FBN
2nd ???
1st maybe
1st I think
2nd make it 2nd
Wow Emotion Detector, straight away, good choice.
Great choices. 👍
Glad you like them!
Thanks Barry. A tough assignment.
To each his own. He has looked at the newer albums…my favorites are from moving pictures and before
it's really funny how personal taste is .. there are some bands were I pretty much agree with him like 95% of the time, and there are other bands that I like, such as Rush where my opinion can be totally divergent from his in terms of what's good or likeable and what isn't.😂😂
With the exception of 2112 and Subdivisions, this seems like a top 10 list of underrated Rush songs. One of my favorite types of lists to ponder. My personal list for Rush would be:
The Analog Kid
Animate
Turn the Page
Kid Gloves
Middletown Dreams
The Anarchist
Cold Fire
In the End
Vital Signs
The Enemy Within
Agree too about SubDivisions.....saw them on that tour......awesome show!
I love that your top ten does not include the usual suspects. Rush were a fantastic band. I shall continue to delve into their wonderful music.
Please do!
Lifelong Rush Fanatic. My Fav Rush Songs, IMHO, INPO:
-Turn The Page
-Driven
-YYZ
-Distant Early Warning
-Freewill
-Second Nature
-Show Don't Tell
-Manhattan Project
-Closer To The Heart
-New World Man
-Red Barchetta
-The Body Electric
-Bravado
-War Paint
-Nobody's Hero
-Scars
-Subdivisions
-Test For Echo
-I Think I'm Going Bald
-Half The World
-Marathon
-Xanadu
-Mystic Rhythms
-The Trees
-Tears
-Territories
-The Spirit Of Radio
So glad to see some of the really strong songs from the 80s highlighted here. To be honest you could almost have chosen an almost entirely different list and I would probably still agreed with it - as long as Time Stand Still, Cygnus X-1 and the mighty Subdivisions are kept in!
Interesting to compare where these are placed on the UCR ranking of all 167 songs of theirs:
10) “Emotion Detector”- 137
9) “The Garden”- 41
8) “Animate”- 76
7) “Entre Nous”- 21
6) “Time Stand Still”- 25
5) “Cygnus book 1”- 13
4) “Distant Early Warning”- 51
3) “2112”- 72
2) “Witch Hunt”- 63
1) “Subdivisions”- 9
Other than Witch Hunt and Subdivisions my list would be quite different. But that is the beauty of such a rich catalogue with different styles of music. There is certainly plenty to choose from.
Bold list. I don't agree with it, but I respect it. You made your case.
awesome work Barry. Superbly described as usual,my favourite youtube videos. Always look forward to your work sir.
By tor is I think is their trippiest and most phycadelic cut ,it has to be in my top 3 ,it's also their best track on all the worlds a stage ,just my opinion .
Neil: From a band point of view, we certainly worked on our musicianship first, then - armed with that increased facility and confidence in our individual instruments - expanded into paying more attention to songwriting, arranging, and production... Our music has always been a mirror of ourselves, our lives, and our interests. Any “shift” in my lyrics was thus a gradual, natural one - my reading expanded, I matured, I didn’t want to do what I had already done. Those were reasons enough to keep trying different things, some successful, some not - but all sincere... When a track doesn't reach people it's really your fault and we've had that experience on almost every album. I think you have to say that if a song doesn't connect with people then the fault of accessibility lies with communication... But if I couldn't look back at songs which were unsuccessful in certain terms then perhaps there wouldn't be any chains of development of progression to other, later numbers... 'Manhattan Project' on 'Power Windows' has the correct balance between the music, the lyrics and the theme.
Someone remembered Emotion Detector! Glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is one of their best.
Throw in The Analog Kid, for another not hyped but great Rush song.
My favourite Geddy Lee bassline.
So Rush is one of my favorites and would like to share my favorites but I have to preface it by saying I was in high school in late 80s/early 90s and the 3 songs that got me hooked was The Pass, Subdivisions and Tom Sawyer. I love the must aligned Presto album and personally feel Counterparts was the last great album. I am not sure if this is in order but...1. Show Don't Tell, 2. The Spirit of Radio, 3. The Pass, 4. Subdivisions, 5. Time Stand Still, 6. Xanadu, 7. Heresy, 8. Limelight, 9. Red Barchetta and 10. La Villa Strangiato.
Great picks Barry 👍one of My favorite bands of all time 😁. Thankyou sir
Some interesting and surprising choices there. Respect though and with such a massive and wonderful back catalogue of work its unlikely many would agree on a top ten.
Huge Rush fan here!! Glad you did something about your favorite songs. Everyone had different faves. You touched on a lot of them for me. Although my faves would look quite different. I can't deny the albums you chose have great tracks on them. And I would have used the majority of them in my list but the difference would be that Cygnus X-1 Book 2: Hemispheres would be there instead of Book 1. Again personal preference. Thanks again for this list. I loved it.
Glad you enjoyed!
Distant Early Warning is from the name of the system of radar stations in the northern Arctic region of Canada also known as the DEW line. Peart slipping in some Canadiana.